Revenues generated by the sale of M2M modules failed to break the $1 billion mark last year, as the industry had hoped, but look set to exceed that figure in 2013, according to a new study from ABI Research.

The market-research company notes that 2G continues to be the dominant technology used in M2M modules, accounting for 70% of all shipments in 2012, which is partly responsible for the downward pressure on pricing.

“Cellular M2M module price competition was intense in 2012 driven by several factors,” said Dan Shey, a practice director at ABI Research.

“Europe was not the traditional M2M module bellwether market and continued to decline in share of module shipments; some Chinese vendors competed aggressively in the higher volume 2G led market segments; and operators pushed hard for lower module pricing to grow total cellular connections,” said Shey.

According to ABI Research, however, module vendors can insulate themselves from price-based competition if they target the right industry verticals and offer additional services.

Module pricing for the top vendors in the market ranged from $12 to $31 per unit, according to ABI Research.